Supporting and driving means for gyratory shafts



A. R. CURTIS June 24, 1930.

SUPPORTING AND DRIVING MEANS FOR GYRATORY SHAFTS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 28, 1924 j") 671 To 71 Jun 24, 1930- A. R. CURTIS 1,767,053

SUPPORTING AND DRIVING MEANS FOR GYRATORY SHAFTS Filed April 28, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 26 T fi 3- .26 t

H 1 5 N\\\'\ 1 4 22 f Patented June 24-, 1930 UNlTEtE STAT S ARTHUR R. CURTIS, GF CLEVELAND, OHIO SUPPORTING AND DRIVING MEANS FOR GYRATORY SHAFTS Application filed April 28,

This invention relates to supporting and driving means for gyratory shafts such as employed in centrifugal extractors and has for its object to provide a mounting for the shaft in which the shaft is so supported that lateral movements thereof are yieldingly opposed, to; ther with a simple and cilicient driving connection between the gyratory shaft and a true running wheel such that the vibratory movements of the shaft will not be communicated to the driving mechanism.

liith the abm'e and other objects in View the invention may be said to comprise the nmdiiications illustrated in the accompany ing drawings, hereinafter described and particularly set forth in the appended claim, together with such variations and modifications thereof as will be apparent to one skillet in the art to which the invention appertains.

Reference should be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification in which Fig. 1 is a side elevation showing a portion of a rotary extractor, the gyratoryshaft which supports the extractor basket and a portion of the supporting housing and driving mechanism for the shaft; Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken centrally through the shaft supporting housing; Fig. 3 is a vertical section corresponding to Fig. 2 showing a modified form of driving connection between the shaft and gear; Fig. a is a detail View showing a transverse section through the driving connection shown in Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a vertical ection showing an additional modification of the driving connection.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, the gyratory shaft 1 which supports at its upper end the extractor basket 2 is mounted at its lower end in a supporting housing 3 and is driven through a friction gear 4 which is engaged by a driving friction gear 5 operated from a suitable source of power.

The present invention resides in the mounting of the shaft 1 and in the means by which the shaft 1 is driven from the gear 1-, the shaft 1 being yieldably mounted. in the housing 3 and provided with a driving 1924. Serial No. 709,480.

connection with the gear a which does not interfere with the gyratory movements of the shaft within the hub of the gear. The housing 3 is rigidly secured to the frame of the machine and as shown herein is provided with a base flange (5 which is secured to a base plate 7 which is a rigid part of the frame. The housing 3 which may be cylindrical inv form provided upon the interior thereof with an inwardly extending leripheral flange 8 and a top closure memher 9 which is screwed into the top of the casing, the shaft supporting means being secured between the flange 8 and closure member 9 of the housing. The closure memher 9 is annular in form having a central opening through which the shaft 1 extends and being provided around the central opening with a recess to receive a ball bearing 10 to the inner race ring of which is secured the downwardly projecting hub 11 of the gear at, the hub 11 having an interior diameter somewhat greater than the diameter of the shaft 1 to permit the necessary lateral movements of the shaft. Mounted within the housing 3 is a tubular shaft supporting member 12 which is closed at its lower end and provided with a bushing 13 in the lower bearing portion thereof within which the lower end of the shaft 1 is journaled, thrustbuttons l t being provided between the bottom of the member 12 and the lower end of the shaft to support the shaft. Above the tango 8 within the housing the supporting member 12 has an enlarged upper end portion 15 and. be ween the lower part of the enlarged portion 15 and the wall of the housing there is fitted a rubber cushioning ring 16 which rests upon the flange 8 of the housing. The enlarged portion 15 of the supporting member is provided with an outwardly extending peripheral flange 17 which. rests upon the upper edge of the cushioning ring 16 and between the flange 17 are the adjustable cover member 9 there is interposed a second. cushioning ring 18 of rubber or other suitable elastic material. The shaft supporting member 12 is thus yieldingly supported in the housing 3 so that the shaft 1 may have limited lateral movements, the amount of resistance to such lateral movements being regulable by ad justment of the screw cover 9 to vary the compression of the cushioning rings.

The upper end of the shaft supporting member 12 above the bearing portion thereof has an enlarged recess 19 extending from the top thereof to slightly below the exterior flanges 17 and within the lower portion of this recess a collar 20 is fixed to the shaft. Surrounding the shaft 1 within he recess 19 is a coil spring 21 which i connected at its upper end to the hub 11 of the gear 4 and at its lower end to the collar 20. The spring 21 forms a yi ldin driving connection between the gear 4 and the sha t 1 and this driving connection will not interfere with the lateral movements of the shaft within the hub of the driving wheel and will not transmit vibratory movements from the shaft to the driving gear. By reason of the moun ing of the shaft and the driving connection above desci ed the driving gear t which rotates upon a od bearing will have a uniform engagement with the driving gear 5 and the operation of tne driving mechanism is rendered practically noiseless.

Fig. 3 of the drawing shows a modificaof the means for driving the shaft and in (his modification the shaft 1 is mounted within the housing 3 in substzntially the same manner as in the first modification, the (hi 'ing gear 4t being mounted upon the housing in substamiially the same manner except that toe ball bearing is omitted. In this modification the gear l has a hub 11 which extends dov-nnwludly i. to the recess 19 at the 1; per end of the shaft supporting In the plane of the supporting flang 17 of the shaft supporting member;

12, the shaft 1 is provided vith an inte clrcun'iferential rib 22 w h a spherical OULSI surface,

the center of which is at the axis of the shaft. This rounded rib 22 fits within the tubular hub l1 so that the shaft in it. lateral movements is caused oscillate ab ut the enter of curvature of the ril 22 loca the center of gyration at the intersection of the axis of the shaft and the central 9 ane of he rib. At its lower end the hub 11 is )rovided with diametrically opposed slots 23 in which are engaged cylindrical lugs 2% which are fixed to the shaft. In operation the rotary movement of the gear 4 is transmitted to the shaft 1 through the lugs 21- which always engage with the edges of he slots 23 at points lying in a )lane passing hrough the center of oscillation of the shaft. For retaining the shaft in proper position within the supporting member 12 a collar is fixed to the shaft above the gear at and this collar has a spherical concave bearsurface 26 on its ur :rsidc which aged by a. raised spherical bearing surrace 27 at the hub of the gear. The spherical bearing surfaces 26 and 27 have their center at the center of oscillation of the shaft so that the shaft is permitted to oscillate freely within the hub.

in the modification shown in Fig. 5 the housing 3", gear 1 and the mounting of the shaft supoo g member 12 within the housing is s .ostantially the same as in the modiication first described. In this modificat; 1 the hub 11 of the gear l projects iuwarcly into the recess 17 at the upper end of the supporting member 12 and within the recess 17" and substantially in the same plane as the flanges 17 of the supporting member, the shaft 1 has ixed thereto a collar 28 which has eiametrically opposed vertical slots 29 extendin inwardly from he periphery thereof. The lower end of he hub 11 provided with downwardly noj cting lugs 30 which engage in the slots the collar 28. The lugs 30 engaging n the slots provide a driving connection between the gear a and shaft 1 which is substantialh the plane of the center of oscillation oi the shaft. A collar 25" corresponding to the collar 25 above described 1: 13' be provided for holding the shaft in prop r position in its support.

Having described my invention, I claim:

In a device of the character described, the combination with a vertical shaft, of a supporting member at the lower end of said shaft in which said shaft rotatably mounted, means for yieldably supporting said member to permit the shaft to gyrate, said supporting member having a. lower bearing portion in which the shaft is journalod and an. cnlaig d tubular portion surrounding the shaft above the bearing portion, a fixed bearing surrounding the shaft above said supporting member, a driving member having a hub rotatable in the fixed bearing and an axial opening through which the shaft ext-ends and within which the shaft is free to gyra e, and means within the enlarged upper portion of the supporting member forming a riving connection betweei said hub and shaft, said driving connection permitting lateral movement of the shaft within the hub.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto atlix my signature.

ARTE UR R. CURTIS. 

